The present invention is directed generally to a new and improved contact lens disinfector unit, and more particularly to an improved housing assembly construction for use in a contact lens disinfector unit which precludes contact with the unit heating block and the circuit components connected thereto.
Contact lenses, both of the hard and soft type, should be disinfected before use. To this end, a well accepted method of disinfecting is to dispose a pair of contact lenses in a container or lens case which may also have receptacles therein for holding the right and left lenses spaced apart so that they do not become confused. A quantity of disinfecting fluid is then administered to the container and the container is placed in engagement with a heating block of a disinfector unit for heating the disinfecting fluid to a prescribed temperature found to be sufficient to destroy harmful bacteria. The lens case is in direct contact with the heating block and the fluid within the container is in direct contact with the lenses and effects the disinfecting thereof. After the disinfecting temperature has been reached and maintained for a sufficient period of time, the lens case and the contact lenses contained therein are permitted to cool, preparatory to removal of the lenses from the case and disposition thereof on the eyes of a user.
In order to energize the unit, the heating block is associated with a resistive type heating element, which is connected to a suitable voltage source, such as a wall outlet for example, by a cord type connector and an electronic circuit contained within the disinfector unit housing. The circuit may include a thermostatic switch as a component thereof which, upon sensing that the heating block has reached a predetermined temperature, will open to break the circuit between the heating element and the voltage source. Because a voltage potential will still exist within the unit after operation of the thermostatic switch, which voltage is potentially injurious or even lethal in the case of infants or small children, care must be taken to prevent access to and contact with said circuit components.
It is therefore a general object of the present invention to provide a new and improved contact lens disinfector unit which includes a housing assembly designed and structured to preclude contact with the heating block and its associated circuitry which may carry potentially injurious voltage potentials.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a housing assembly for use in a contact lens disinfector unit of the type which has a drawer slidingly received by an aperture in the housing to permit placement of a lens case into the drawer externally to the housing and wherein the drawer includes an upstanding panel which is of greater dimension than the aperture for providing an abutment stop when the drawer is fully displaced from the housing and for completely covering the drawer receiving aperture to prevent access to the interior of the housing and contact with the disinfector unit heating block and the associated heating circuitry.
The invention therefore provides a housing assembly for use in a contact lens disinfector unit of the type which disinfects a pair of contact lenses contained within a contact lens case. The unit includes heating means upon which the lens case rests and which is adapted to be connected to a voltage source for raising the lens case, and the contact lenses contained therein, to a temperature sufficient to attain disinfecting thereof. The housing assembly is specifically designed to prevent contact with the heating means from the exterior of the housing and includes a lower housing portion, an upper housing portion, the housing portions being adapted to interfit to form a structure having a pair of end walls, and aperture means within one of the end walls of a predetermined dimension. The housing assembly further includes a drawer means slidingly received within the aperture means, the drawer means having a pair of spaced apart upstanding panels or flanges, with a lens case receiving aperture between the panels. One of the upstanding panels is disposed interiorly of the housing, between the end walls, and is larger in dimension than the aperture means for providing an abutment stop against the one end wall when the drawer means is slidingly displaced with respect to the housing, the panel is sized and disposed with respect to the interior of the housing assembly to prevent contact with the heating means circuit components.
The invention further provides a contact lens disinfector unit comprising a housing having a lower housing portion and an upper housing portion defining a forward end wall and a rear end wall, heating means within the housing for heating a lens case containing contact lenses, connection means at the rear end wall for connecting the heating means to a voltage source, and aperture means within the forward end wall having a predetermined dimension. The disinfector unit also includes a drawer means slidingly received within the aperture means, wherein the drawer means has a pair of spaced apart upstanding panels and lens case receiving means between the panels. One panel is disposed between the end walls and is of larger dimension than the aperture means for providing an abutment stop against the forward end wall when the drawer means is slidingly fully displaced from the housing and for covering the aperture means to prevent contact with the heating means and voltage source connected thereto.